(1) Field of the Invention
This invention relates to oil well working boards used to stand upon while connecting and disconnecting stands of drill pipe and more particularly to a board that has a substantial amount of floor area for a workman to stand upon.
(2) Description of the Prior Art
Commercially on the market before my invention, working boards utilized parallel finger racks several inches wide which formed storage spaces. Such boards had solid floor members on three edges and a solid center floor piece which extended from the outer side inward to the side connected to the drilling rig. However, there were many areas and spaces where the stands of drill pipe were worked in which a workman could step into and fall. When pipe stands were being stored or removed from the finger racks the workman had no mechanical means to aid him and the work was hard, physical and inherently unsafe. The pipe had to be tied by a rope to remain in the finger racks and a rope was not always effective.
Before this application was filed, a search was made in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and the following patents were found:
Moore U.S. Pat. No. 2,576,803 PA1 Boudette U.S. Pat. No. 2,909,288 PA1 Thornburg U.S. Pat. No. 2,972,388 PA1 Woolslayer U.S. Pat. No. 3,145,802 PA1 Gyongyosi U.S. Pat. No. 3,286,777 PA1 Swoboda U.S. Pat. No. 3,840,128 PA1 Benjamin U.S. Pat. No. 4,061,233 PA1 Hilding U.S. Pat. No. Re. 30,071
It would appear from these prior patents that none of them (except Moore and Woolslayer et al.) show a working board wherein a man manipulates drill stem pipe.
Woolslayer shows a platform having many pivoting rack fingers wherein a workman walks on the unused fingers.
Several automated devices employing semi-circular magazine type pipe holders are shown.
Hilding shows a drill string handling apparatus that has means for transferring the pipe but the invention does not utilize a workman standing on a platform. Gyongyosi shows a drill pipe storage handling system in the form of a semi-circular storage but there is no working board associated with the invention.
The other patents do not appear to be any more pertinent than those discussed above.